The Ten-Year Myth
by Weirdo.Blabber
Summary: [AU][Oneshot] GraLu Week Day 1 entry. Prompt: Myth. "Well, when relationships last for that long it's probable that one or the other gets tired or falls out, you know?" said Levy, and this bothers Lucy so much that she thinks Gray really is going to break up with her. How will this be resolved by one visit to Lucy's apartment one night?


**HAPPY GRALU WEEK!**

 **WEIRDO BLABBS:** It is very hard for me to write stories with prompts. I actually had several ideas for this first prompt (which included an Aladdin-themed story, a fairytale-themed story, etc) but I felt that they weren't "THE ONE". Then, one evening, my research professor was telling my friend and I about this old girlfriend of his and the way their love story ended and I was like, "Hey, that's it...! THAT'S IT!" So after much procrastinating and planning, this is the fruit of my imagination. GraLu Week 2015 entry number one.

I hope you like it!

 **GRALU WEEK ENTRY #1 (Prompt: Myth/Legend)**

 **THE TEN-YEAR MYTH**

The line blinked several times in front of Lucy impatiently. She had been staring at the blank document for a few hours now, occasionally typing something tentatively and then deleting it again to start over. This happened a few times since she sat in front of her desk this morning. She had both her legs up on her chair as she rested her chin on her knees, both arms hugging her lower limbs, whole body unmoving except for her own blinking and the rising and falling of her chest as she breathed. Her brain was empty; as empty as the document she was facing.

 _Tok! Tok!_

There was a knock on the wooden wall of her cubicle and she looked up. Levy, her blue-haired colleague and friend since college, was staring at her with a smile on her face. Lucy looked at her digital clock: 12:34PM.

"Oh, shit!" she cursed and immediately stood up. "Is it lunch already?!"

"Well, yeah," Levy answered. "That's why I came to get you."

Lucy groaned. "I haven't written a thing...!" she complained. She took her phone and her purse, and walked to the door with Levy. "The chief gave me until next week to write it but I've got nothing to start with for the next article."

"What's it about?"

"I don't even know what I want to write about yet..."

"That's unusual..." said Levy, and she proceeded to explain how Lucy has always had ideas for her monthly article in the magazine they were working for. Levy wrote for the 'Healthy Relationships' section, and she has been faring well. But Lucy's section, the 'Every Girl's Guide to...' section, has always been more popular with their readers because of Lucy's wit and skill. However, to see Lucy having such a hard time... "Ah, I know. Why don't you ask Gray for advice? Doesn't he usually have good ideas for your articles?"

Lucy sighed, deeper this time. Levy could sense that she had struck a nerve and could not help but to laugh nervously.

"W-What's wrong, Lucy?"

"Gray... that guy..." And she sighed again.

 _Gray_ —Lucy's boyfriend. When he was still finishing up law school, he had always tried to find time for Lucy. Whether it was a call or a text, or just a quick visit to her apartment, Gray would do it no matter how busy he got. Now that he's a junior affiliate at a popular law firm in the city, Lucy couldn't help but get the feeling that he was not as ' _into'_ their relationship as he had been all those years ago. He had a lot of things on his plate; every day was a busy day and either he or Lucy was too tired to meet up.

"I haven't seen him in a week," she said, pouting. The elevator doors opened and the two stepped in. "Last time, he was busy helping out with a case and he ditched our date. I haven't talked to him since."

"But doesn't that make you the culprit of all of this?" Levy teased.

"Well... I... _But he's at fault, too_! Recently, when we're on dates, he just looks anxious, like he wants to go home!" she said. She kept pressing the same button over and over again. "And he doesn't talk as much. It's like... it's like he's keeping something from me!"

Levy mouth pursed into a thin line. "How long have you been together?"

"Nine years," she answered. "Turning ten in a few days... _Ugh_!"

"So ten years, huh..." Levy asked, worry in her voice. Then, in a whisper, she said, " _Oh no_..."

Lucy caught this and she immediately snapped her head to Levy's direction. "What?! What do you mean, ' _Oh no_ '?"

"W-Well..." the blunette hesitated, but spoke anyway, "The article I'm on right now is this myth about relationships like yours..."

"Like mine? What do you mean?"

"You know, those that have lasted for almost a decade—the _ten-year myth_ *..."

"And?"

"Well, when relationships last for that long it's probable that one or the other gets tired or falls out, you know?"

" _What_?!" This came out more like a high-pitched squeal than a clarification. Of course, the Lucy heard her friend's statement but the words 'tired' and 'falls out' got her so bad that she fixated on them.

"I mean, it's like... If you keep eating the same food every day for ten years, there's bound to be a time when you'd be tired of it. The people I've interviewed were in really long relationships, too, and time came when some of them realized that the spark just wasn't there anymore... you know?"

Levy looked at Lucy, and her blonde companion was now even more lifeless than she had been. Levy sweat-dropped.

"B-But, of course, there were others who suc-succeeded in their relationships... and are still going steady until today...?" The elevator door opened and Levy stepped out, looking back at her friend. "It's just hearsay, after all, so don't worry too much, okay, Lucy?"

Lucy sighed a year's worth of sighs. "I'm not hungry anymore," she said. She pressed the 'close door' button and disappeared from view.

* * *

 _Every Girl's Guide To: A Failing Relationship_

 _by Lucy H._

 _There will always be that time when you feel that your relationship is a bit unsteady, like it's failing. Your partner may start to feel distant, avoid you, stop calling or texting, or disappear altogether. When this happens, here are a few tips to remember:_

Lucy highlighted the paragraph she had just written and then pressed 'Backspace' on the keyboard. Then, she set her laptop on the coffee table and lay her head on the couch. She had a title now but still nothing to write. What was there to write? _Every girl's guide to a failing relationship, huh?_ If you see that your relationship is failing there really are only two options: if your lover still loves you, fight for it; if your lover does not, let them go. There was no need for an article.

But there is a need for an explanation... some sort of closure. Why? How? What did I do wrong? What can I do to make it right?

Lucy lay on her side and stared at outside the window. Is a break-up really where she and Gray were headed?

 _Ugh, fine_ , she thought and dialed his number. After a few rings, he picked up.

There was a snicker from the speaker on the other line. "Hey," he said casually.

"You didn't contact me," she said, pouting. But at the same time, her heart was fluttering upon hearing the sound of his voice. She relaxed.

Gray laughed. "Weren't you crazy mad the last time? I know from experience to let you cool off before talking to you."

Lucy rolled on her belly. After being together for so long, how could she still not get used to his deep, manly voice? " _It's been a week_."

"I know... I'm sorry. I've been busy with... _things_." _What things_ , she thought suspiciously but didn't voice it out. "You're still sulking right now, aren't you?"

" _N-No_!" she denied.

He gave another quiet laugh. "Have you had dinner yet?"

"No, not yet. I'm busy with—" her article popped into her mind, and, remembering Levy's stupid relationship myth, dropped it. "I haven't had dinner yet."

" _Great_ ," he said.

"And what's so great about me starving?" she asked.

"Well..."

"What?" she asked.

"I'm outside your door right now. I brought dinner. I know you're busy with work so I thought it would be better if we had take out."

* * *

"Hey, Gray, about the other time," Lucy started when she had finished washing her hands after dinner. She looked at her lover, who was busy reading some documents, "Gray?"

He looked up. "Yeah?"

"About the other time... when I kind of got too angry." She turned her back on him, suddenly feeling shy.

Gray let out a loud breath through his nose. She could hear the shuffling of his clothes as he got up from the couch. His footsteps approached her. "It's alright," he said, and then his arms made their way around her waist. He rested his chin on the crown of her head.

"You're heavy, you know?" she said, but settled closer into his embrace. He chuckled. "I'm sorry..."

"For what?"

"It's just... recently, you've been so busy and I've been so busy. We haven't been meeting much, I just... _I want to see you more_..."

"Hm?" Gray broke the embrace and gently twirled Lucy once to face him. "You've been fine not seeing me before. What's with this all of a sudden?"

"I..." _It's that Levy's stupid myth._ She wasn't going to tell him that, though, so she looked away, "Your new job has made you quite busy so... it takes up a lot of your time."

"Well, demands of adult life are like that," he replied. "You can't expect all of our time to be spent with each other. We're both 28 and we can't dilly-dally like a couple of teenagers."

"I know, I know!" Lucy released herself from his tender grip. "But..."

"Lucy—" _Kriiiiing! Kriiiiing!_ Both of them looked at Gray's pants pocket and the man sighed. "Wait, I'll just drop this call—oh, wait. Sorry, I've got to take this after all."

Lucy blinked.

"Sorry, Luce..." he turned and in a whisper said, "Yeah?"

The blonde watched as Gray got into a hushed conversation with the person on the phone. What was up with that? One moment he was all about them and the next, he isn't? What's more important than their first meeting in a week? And why... was Lucy suddenly feeling so _selfish_?

Did the possibility of a break-up suddenly make her insecure?

It took less than a few moments for Gray to end the call. He put it down on the table again and faced Lucy. "Sorry. It was... a personal matter. Where were we?"

"Gray, are you still... in love with me?" she asked.

" _What_?" he asked back. Like hurrying to catch a bus, he took long strides towards her. "What are you talking about?"

"It's just... I feel like lately you've been avoiding me and not so into this relationship, I... I just thought maybe... you weren't in love with me anymore."

Lucy looked up at him and Gray looked back at her with a flabbergasted expression. It only lasted for a second, of course, because Gray lunged at her and kissed her on the lips, pressing their faces hard like it was an answer to Lucy's question.

It wasn't.

But at the same time, it was.

When the kiss broke to allow Lucy time to breathe, Gray showered her forehead, her cheeks, the tip of her nose and her temples with quick kisses. It tickled Lucy, so much so that grabbed on to his shirt and giggled until he stopped. Gray embraced her and they swayed from side to side in a small dance.

"I'm sort of pissed that you thought I didn't love you anymore," he said, planting a kiss on Lucy's crown.

"Well... I can't help but think that. After all, we've been together for so long that you probably grew tired of me," she said.

"And who gave you that idea?"

"Levy was writing about this relationship myth..."

"And you believed her?" he asked, pulling away to look at Lucy in the eyes.

"You're at fault, too, _somehow_ ," she said, the last word coming out like an unsure whisper. "You've been avoiding me lately. And you don't talk to me as much... it's like you're keeping something from me."

Gray sighed, defeated. "I'm not good at keeping secrets, you know that. If I talked to you for more than a few minutes, I'm sure to let something out."

"So you _are_ keeping something from me!" she cried, taking a step back. "Is it a woman? Are you having an affair? _Are we breaking up_?!"

"Lucy, Lucy— _relax_!" he said and calmed her by putting both his hands on her shoulders. "I _am_ keeping something from you. I was going to wait until our anniversary to tell you, that's why I was trying so hard to avoid talking to you too much."

He touched the tip of her nose. "You're very perceptive and you would have figured it out, I'm sure."

"Figured _what_ out?"

"I've been working hard for the firm because I asked for an advance in my salary, nothing major," he started. "I called a few friends to get me some things I needed, and... I already made reservations for that fine dining thing you were going on and on about."

"And...? I don't get what you mean..."

Gray sighed, and then, much to Lucy's surprise, knelt down on one knee. He put his hand in his other pocket and brought out a velvet box. When he opened it, Lucy saw what would have been the most beautiful ring in her life. It was a silver band with two swirling branches meeting at the middle. Two pink crystals were cozily nestled in the middle of the loop of the curving branches.

Lucy's brain short-circuited.

"Will you marry me and become Missus Fullbuster?"

Lucy blinked a few times. "So... we're not breaking up?"

"No," he laughed. When Lucy was still frozen on the spot, Gray said, "My knee is starting to hurt. Are you going to marry me or not?"

Realization suddenly dawned on Lucy and she clasped her hands together tightly. "Yes! Of course, I am!"

Gray sighed out, relieved, and stood up. He embraced her again, tighter this time, and she hugged him back. She inhaled his scent and calmed down. _The ten-year myth, huh?_ Lucy giggled as she settled herself in Gray's arms, thinking of how stupid she has been to believe a stupid legend like that.

* * *

Lucy scrolled down on the document, the one she was having so hard a time to write, and skipped to the bottom of the page. She dragged her mouse and clicked the 'Send' button.

"Ah, Lucy, you're done with your article?" Levy asked, a head of blue poking from behind Lucy's cubicle.

"Yeah, I just sent it to the editor-in-chief. You?"

"Finished," her friend replied. "Hey, I'm really sorry about the last time. I hope it didn't bother you that much."

"No, it's fine now. It'll take more than an old wives' tale to break us up."

Levy breathed out a sigh of relief. "So, I'm guessing you guys talked?"

"Last night," she said. "Everything's fine—no, _better_ than fine now."

"Wow, I guess you have something to tell me over lunch, huh?" Levy said when Lucy joined her out of the office.

"Oh, lots," Lucy said excitedly, "For example, how do you feel about being a maid of honor?"

* * *

 ***THE TEN-YEAR MYTH:** Of course, this is made-up. I don't think there's _really_ a myth like this. Is there? I dunno. Anyway, I just here people keep saying that if a couple have been together for a really long time but haven't tied the knot then they're probably gonna end in a break up. I just wanted to use this idea and falsify it. Hahaha. I hope you guys like it.

 **R & R! Happy GraLu Week!**

 _Other GraLu fanfictions by this author:_

 _ **-Another Shot at Love**_

 _ **-Good Taste**_

 _ **-Massage?**_

 _ **-Starstruck!**_

 _ **-Starstruck! Encore**_

 _ **-Going Going Gone**_

 _ **-The Simple Life**_

 _If you are interested in my other works not stated above, please go to my FanFiction profile: /~weirdoblabber_


End file.
